Noisette roses are one of the most graceful groups of old roses, known for their clusters of flowers, pleasant fragrance, and repeat bloom. Many have a light, airy growth habit, and some make excellent climbers, covering arches, fences, and pergolas with bloom over a long season.
They are also historically important. Noisettes were the first rose class to originate in America, and they helped combine the repeat-flowering influence of China roses with the clustered flowering habit of Musk roses. The result was a charming group of roses that brought elegance, fragrance, and a longer season of color to the garden.
A Little History
Noisette roses began in the early 19th century in South Carolina. They are usually traced back to a cross involving a China rose and a Musk rose, which helped combine repeat flowering with clusters of fragrant blooms.
The class was named after Philippe Noisette, a French nurseryman living in Charleston, who helped distribute these roses. From there, Noisettes became popular in Europe, where breeders developed them further.
Early Noisettes were often smaller-flowered and strongly clustered, while later Noisettes and Tea-Noisettes became larger, more climbing, and often softer in color.
What Noisette Roses Look Like
Noisette roses are best known for flowering in clusters. Instead of one large bloom per stem, many varieties produce sprays of smaller to medium-sized flowers.
Their colors are often soft and garden-friendly: white, blush, pale pink, cream, yellow, apricot, and buff. Some varieties have a light, airy look, while others are stronger climbers with long arching canes.
Many Noisettes have a relaxed habit, which makes them useful on arches, fences, pergolas, pillars, and old walls. They are not usually stiff or formal roses, and that is part of their charm.
Alister Stella Gray: One of The Great Noisettes
Perhaps my favorite of the Noisettes is Alister Stella Gray (1894). There are so many things to love about this rose, and I used to have a wonderful specimen in my own garden.
The buds begin as tightly scrolled apricot, then gradually open and fade through softer shades of cream, buff, and pale yellow, eventually becoming almost white. This gives the plant a lovely range of colors at the same time, especially when it is carrying both fresh buds and older blooms.
The perfume of individual flowers may not be as intense as some other old roses, but under the right conditions the plant can scent a whole part of the garden. On a warm, still summer evening, especially with a little humidity in the air, the fragrance can linger beautifully.
As an added bonus, Alister Stella Gray has relatively few prickles and is easy to train. It can be guided over an arch, along a fence, or against a wall, where its soft color and repeat bloom can be properly enjoyed.
Fragrance
Many Noisette roses are fragrant, often with a soft, sweet scent carried in clusters of bloom. The fragrance is not always powerful in every variety, but good Noisettes can add a lovely perfume to the garden, especially in warm weather.
Their scent, repeat bloom, and clustered flowers are part of what makes the class so appealing. They are roses to grow where you can walk past them, sit near them, or enjoy them on an arch or pergola.
How to Use Noisette Roses in the Garden
Noisette roses are especially useful where a relaxed, romantic look is wanted. Many are ideal for arches, pergolas, fences, pillars, old sheds, and cottage walls.
They usually look best when trained gently rather than cut hard into shape. Their long stems can be tied in and guided, allowing the flowers to appear along the plant rather than only at the top.
Good companion plants include:
Lavender, Catmint, Salvias, Hardy geraniums, Campanulas, Clematis, Foxgloves, Other old-fashioned perennials.